DHARMA logos
For other logos used in Lost, see Logos :For unofficial DHARMA logos, see Fan-made DHARMA logos The DHARMA Initiative is represented by a series of distinct eight-sided logos, based on the traditional Taoist Bagua or pa kua ("eight trigrams" in Chinese). One is believed to be a general logo, representing the Initiative as a whole. The other logos seem to be designed specifically for each of the various DHARMA Initiative activities, in particular for the stations on the Island. These station logos are spray-painted on walls and printed on various items in the stations; they are also featured in the orientation films. For clarity, a "logo" is defined here to be something painted or physically carved, while a "graphic" is something shown in a video. General info }} The logos are octagonal and the outer parts of the octagon are derived from the I Ching (below). Most of the logos also feature the word "DHARMA" across its center, except for the Hydra, the Pearl, the Flame and the Looking Glass logos that feature it below the center. The main differences between the logos lie in the circular central part, which contains a unique symbol for each station. Four of these symbols are drawn on the blast door map. With the exception of the Staff logo which has red in its central part, all of them appear in black and white. When the logo is painted on a wall, the outline seems to have gaps. However, this is probably due to the stencils used to spray paint the logos. The logos are usually black on a white or neutral background, unless they are seen as a graphic on a video where the colors are inverted to a white logo on a black background. However, the Pearl logo is white on black background, even when it is presented outside of a video. For example, although the Swan logo is a black logo on white background, the colors are inverted for the Swan Orientation Video. On the other hand, the Pearl's logo is always inverted in color, even if not found on the video itself. The logo is first seen on-screen briefly at the very beginning of , when Desmond goes about his daily routine opening a red locker in the Swan station to grab a jet injector and a vial of the vaccine to inject himself with it. Main logo *This seems to be the principal DHARMA Initiative logo, corresponding to the initiative as a whole and representing all DHARMA Initiative stations, tests, and activities. *There is no image in the center of the logo. *The word "DHARMA" is printed across the centered circle. *The lettering is standardly white over the circle's black background. Appearances *On the tail of a shark in the water off the island. *On DHARMA products like shampoo, soap, bottled water, ketchup, and salsa from the Hydra station *On the front of the DHARMA van *On various food items from the Flame station *On the DHARMA cabling map in the bottom right corner *On some of the boxes, a boat, and garbage cans at the dock of the Barracks; colors inverted *On the DHARMA welcome sign at the dock of the Barracks *On the DHARMA jumpsuits of many DHARMA employees *On the wall of the DHARMA admitting area; colors inverted *On Annie's and other DHARMA t-shirts *On Ben's and other DHARMA school uniforms (polo shirts) *On some objects in the Orchid station *On the cue card used at the beginning of the Orchid Orientation film outtakes *A color inverted variant appears in Mysteries of the Universe. Non-canon appearances *In Rachel Blake's first video *In the intro video on disc 7 of the Season 2 DVD DHARMA Station logos The Swan logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Swan *The image in the center of the logo is a swan. *The word "DHARMA" is printed across the centered circle. *The image and lettering are standardly white over the circle's black background. Appearances *On red locker inside the Swan station *On DHARMA jumpsuits inside the Swan station (including Desmond's) *On numerous walls inside the Swan station *On the Swan computer inside the Swan station *A 3D imprinted block jutting out of the wall inside the Swan station *On the canister for the Swan orientation film *In the Swan orientation film; colors inverted *On Dr. Marvin Candle's lab coat in the Swan Orientation film *On many items (food and non) inside the Swan station pantry *On the circuit breaker inside the Swan station *Scrawled on the blast door map *On food items from the periodic resupply drop *On the DHARMA Initiative playing cards and matches *On the Pearl computer *On the Fail Safe key *On DHARMA beer in DHARMA van and in Roger Linus's Barracks home *On the alcohol bottles in the Flame *On Dr. Marvin Candle's lab coat in the Barracks video. *On Roger Linus's uniform *On Dr. Edgar Halliwax's lab coat in the Orchid Orientation film. *On the soda crackers box from Ben's hidden case *On some food items in the Barracks *On a large piece of debris at the bottom of the Swan station wreckage after its implosion *On the wine bottle in the LaFleur house *On the jumpsuits used by Radzinsky, Daniel Faraday, and other workers/site security *On Dr. Chang's lab coat in the Hydra Orientation film. Non-canon appearances *On the sharks in the images published at DJ Dan's website and in a hack of the Hanso Foundation website "Backwards R" logo This logo was originally thought to be a fake found on Retrieveroftruth.com (different from the real site Retrieversoftruth.com). Note the backwards "R". It was later found (8/16/07) on the ABC Lost store's "DHARMA GEAR" page, seen here. The logo was still present as of 05/29/08, unchanged, even after new products were added to the ABC store. It is notable that the "fake logo" is placed, in the same photograph, next to the doors to the Swan, with the presumably real logo on said doors. See the "Promo Banner" picture. This logo was believed to be fake, but its presence on the ABC site raises questions about its origins. As it has not appeared in the show itself, it cannot be considered canon. The validity of this logo is yet to be confirmed, or if it was just an error by a web designer, and not a plot point. The Arrow logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Arrow *The image in the center of the logo is an arrow pointing upwards. *The word "DHARMA" is placed across the centered circle. *The image and lettering are standardly black over the circle's white background. Appearances *On some of the walls in the Arrow station *Scrawled on the blast door map *On Horace Goodspeed's jumpsuit The Staff logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Staff *The image in the center of the logo is a red caduceus. **Despite historical confusion with the Rod of Asclepius, the caduceus in recent history represents medicine or doctors. *The word "DHARMA" is placed across the centered circle. *The lettering is standardly black over the circle's white background. *The image is standardly red over the circle's white background. **This is the only logo which has thus far included any non-black-and-white coloration (in canon). In all appearances, the caduceus has been red. Appearances *In the Staff medical station *On equipment and supplies in the Staff *Scrawled on the blast door map *On the medical kit found in The Flame station *On the lab coat of a doctor in the DHARMA admitting area *On a medical kit used by Richard Alpert to tend to Locke's gunshot wound *On Juliet's and Debra's scrubs while operating on Ben. The Hydra logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Hydra *The image in the center of the logo is a six-headed hydra monster. *The word "DHARMA" is placed in the upper-most line of the bottom hexagram design. **The lettering coloration standardly follows this logo's hexagram lines: black on white. *The image is standardly white over the circle's black background. Appearances *On an awning visible from the cages in which Sawyer, Kate, and Karl were held *Inside the Hydra station *On Jack's and Juliet's scrubs during Ben's surgery *Above the door to the Hydra station facility *On the collar of the polar bear skeleton in Tunisia Non-canon appearances *On Damon Lindelof's hat in the first official video podcast. This was shown before the episode . The Pearl logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Pearl }} *The image in the center of the logo is a white pearl filling the whole center circle. *The word "DHARMA" is placed in the upper-most line of the bottom hexagram design. **The lettering coloration standardly follows this logo's hexagram lines: white on black. *The logo is standardly seen with an inverted color scheme. This is most likely to differentiate this logo from a simple blank DHARMA Initiative logo, showing it as a white pearl, which would be invisible in the standard color scheme, or misrepresenting if it were a black circle. Appearances *debatable On the t-shirts of the jumping-jack study group shown in the Pearl Orientation video *On the Pearl's television screens behind Dr. Mark Wickmund in the Pearl Orientation video *On a torn shirt found with skeletons in the polar bear's cave *On a wall of the Pearl station *On the DHARMA jumpsuit of Mike in the Barracks *On Ben's map *(Inverse) On the jumpsuit of a DHARMA department head in the Barracks The Flame logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Flame *The image in the center of the logo is a flame. *The word "DHARMA" is placed in the upper-most line of the bottom hexagram design. **Lettering coloration standardly follows this logo's hexagram lines: black on white. *Image is standardly white over the circle's black background. Appearances *Scrawled on the blast door map *On a wall inside the Flame station *On Mikhail's DHARMA jumpsuit *On DHARMA manuals in the Flame station *On the Flame computer, once John wins at chess *On Dr. Pierre Chang's lab coat on the Flame video *On the DHARMA cabling map *On Radzinsky's jumpsuit The Orchid logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Orchid *The image in the center of the logo resembles an orchid. *The word "DHARMA" is placed in the upper-most line of the bottom hexagram design. *The hexagram lines are black on white. Appearances *Was shown on the "secondary protocol" that Martin Keamy was reading. *A sketch of the logo appears in Daniel's notebook. *Was seen in the Orchid Orientation film, but as a inverted logo. *Impressed on the hard hats of DHARMA builders (including Daniel Faraday) in the construction of the Orchid station (Pierre Chang also wore a hard hat when he entered the unfinished station.) Post-wheel parka logo *This logo, with the order of the trigrams changed, was on Ben's parka when he appeared in the Tunisian desert. However, the trigrams on the parka were correct before Ben moved the Island. The Looking Glass logo ''Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Looking Glass *The image in the center of the logo is a rabbit's head. *The word "DHARMA" is placed in the upper-most line of the bottom hexagram design. **The lettering coloration standardly follows this logo's hexagram lines: black on white. *The image is standardly white over the circle's black background. Appearances *On the exterior of the Looking Glass station *On Greta's jumpsuit *On the wall inside the station *On Rosie's jumpsuit The Tempest logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Tempest *The image in the center of the logo is a wave. *The word "DHARMA" is placed across the circle, below center. *The lettering is standardly black over the image's white background. *The image is standardly white over the circle's black background. **This creates a pattern similar to a yin yang symbol. Appearances *On the exterior of the Tempest station *In various places inside the Tempest station *On Daniel's map The Lamp Post logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Lamp Post * This logo appeared at the very end of a Dharma Special Access video with Damon Lindelof and Carlton Cuse. * Also as part of Dharma Special Access (prior to season 5), Lindelof revealed in an e-mail to recruits that this logo is from an unknown DHARMA Initiative station. * It was briefly visible on the Ajira Airways website, under the flight booking service. * The word DHARMA does not appear in the logo. Appearances * On a computer used by Ms. Hawking in the Lamp Post * On a door opened by Ms. Hawking in the station Other DHARMA logos "Temple" logo Associated DHARMA Initiative location: The Temple *The image in the center of the logo appears to have a black altar with a white background inside the center circle. It has not yet been seen clearly enough to form more than a speculative depiction. *The Temple was not a DHARMA station, so it is unclear why it has a DHARMA logo. *It was on the map to the Temple that Ben gave to Danielle, Karl, and Alex "DHARMA security" logo Associated DHARMA Initiative location: Security Office *The image in the center of the logo resembles a 5-pointed sheriff star. *The word "DHARMA" is placed in the center of the star. *It was worn by DHARMA Initiative security personnel, including Sawyer (as James LaFleur), Jerry, Phil, Jin and Miles. * Referred to as "the Dharma Initiative Security logo" by the ABC.com Lost store (non-canon). "DHARMA motor pool" logo Associated DHARMA Initiative location: Motor Pool * Has a wrench in the middle * There is no "DHARMA" written on it unlike most of the logos. * Worn by Juliet and Kate in the motor pool , * Seen on the gas tank and oil drums * Referred to as "Dharma Motorpool logo" and "Dharma Motor Pool" logo by the ABC.com Lost store (non-canon). "DHARMA cafeteria" logo Associated DHARMA Initiative location: DHARMA cafeteria. * Has a chef's hat, and two utensils in the center * "DHARMA" is under circle but does not replace any trigram bars. * Worn by Hurley with the designation "Chef" on the pocket * Referred to as "the Dharma Cafeteria logo" by the ABC.com Lost store (non-canon). "DHARMA school" logo Associated DHARMA Initiative location: School * Has an apple on top of several books * The word "DHARMA" does not appear. * Seen on Hurley's notebook * Seen on the Lost University homepage. "DHARMA submarine" logo Associated DHARMA Initiative location: Submarine *Shows most of a submarine. *The word "DHARMA" does not appear. *Seen on the jumpsuits of Captain Bird and the crew aboard the Galaga Unidentified canon logos "Door" logo Associated DHARMA Initiative "station": The Door * This logo appears on the door of what was presumed to be a station but turned out to be a deception. The door had only a rock wall behind it and appears to be just a part of a facade encampment called the decoy village by the Others. * The image in the center of the logo is a rectangle, with a horizontal line shooting through the center. * Users of Lostpedia dubbed this façade "the Door". * The rectangle appears to be a golden rectangle, a mathematical ratio which is common in art, architecture, and nature. "Sri Lanka Video" logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: Unknown * This logo came with the Sri Lanka video fragment on hansoexposed.com as part of the Lost Experience (appears when the code "FVH7N" is entered). * No official name has been given yet. * It is not clear yet whether this logo is also connected to a station or only to the "Sri Lanka" video. * One of the DHARMA Initiative's fields of study was meteorology and it is theorized that another unknown meteorology station was located on the island that was used to manipulate weather. The design of this logo could represent a planet or moons and might be connected to that unknown station. * The image in the center of the logos is three circles, ranging in different sizes. * Javier Grillo-Marxuach's blog after the Lost Experience ended noted that the logo is supposed to represent a hydrogen atom, in reference to the graphic novel Watchmen. http://hansofoundation.livejournal.com/2452.html?thread=101268#t101268. "Psychology" logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: Unknown * This logo appeared at the beginning of the DHARMA Initiative Psychology Test Orientation video, released in the Lost Experience. * It is not clear yet whether this logo is also connected to a station or only to the psychology test (see below). * Many Lost fans had formerly referred to this logo as "The Raven", due to the image's appearance, and alluding to the Edgar Allen Poe character, which drove a man to insanity. However, this was discontinued after the revealing of the real image on the logo (below). * The image is a silhouette of Alvar Hanso, as revealed by Javier Grillo-Marxuach in his blog. http://hansofoundation.livejournal.com/2452.html?thread=101268#t101268 *It does not contain the word "DHARMA". *This is one of three DHARMA logos with an inverted color scheme. Alternative DHARMA logos The "Alternative" Arrow logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Arrow * This logo was only seen on Horace Goodspeed's jumpsiut. * It is believed to be an "Alternative" Arrow logo. *It is The Arrow logo with the center colors inverted. The "Alternative" Staff logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Staff *The Logo was seen on Ethan's canteen. *It is beleved to be an "Alternative" Staff logo. *It is the staff logo inverted. The "Alternative" Hydra logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Hydra *It is beleved to be an "Alternative" Hydra logo. *It is the Hydra logo with a red hydra. The "Alternative" Looking Glass logo Associated DHARMA Initiative station: The Looking Glass *On Sayid's schematic; alternate version *It is beleved to be an "Alternative" Looking Glass logo. *It is the Looking Glass logo inverted with a clock on the neck of the rabbit with the time being 8 15. Modernized logo In the alternate reality game Dharma Initiative Recruiting Project, the modern reincarnation of the DHARMA initiative uses a modernized logo that eliminates much of the detail in the original DHARMA logo. The trigrams of the I-Ching are fused together, and the border is eliminated. The text "Dharma Initiative" is spelled out in Futura typeface, with the lowercase "Dharma" in bold. Also of note is the new arrangement of the trigrams: the arrangement of the standard logo was turned 90 degrees clockwise. Unidentified non-canon logos "Flash" logo * This logo appeared in the trailer for the video game Lost: Via Domus. * It appears to be a lightning bolt emblazoned on a black background. * It is not clear yet whether this is associated with a station or with the Island's electricity supply. * The word "DHARMA" does not appear in the logo. * No official name has been given yet. * This is one of three DHARMA logos with an inverted color scheme. * This logo never appeared in the final version of the game, although the lightning bolt does appear on electrical equipment found throughout the game. "Fuel" logo * This logo appears on the fuel cans in Lost: Via Domus. * The word "DHARMA" does not appear in the logo. The logos' origins The octagonal diagrams with the line-symbols (called "trigrams") surrounding the center DHARMA Initiative symbols are derived from a fundamental philosophical concept in ancient China known as Bagua. In Chinese, ba means the number eight and gua means "trigram"; thus the term ba gua signifies the eight trigrams. http://www.jadedragon.com/archives/fengshui/fengshu.html The concept of Bagua is applied not only to Chinese Taoist thought and the "I Ching", but is also used in other domains of Chinese culture, such as feng shui, martial arts, navigation, etc. All DHARMA Initiative logos seen so far have the trigrams around the outside. Each trigram consists of three lines that can be either: * a straight line (for male; light; the odd numbers 1,3,5,...) or * a line with a break (for female; darkness; the even numbers 2,4,6,...). Eight combinations are possible. The trigrams that surround the center of the symbol are also identical to those found on what is believed to be the earliest recorded flag of South Korea. I Ching The I Ching (Pinyin for Chinese 易经, "Book of Changes" or "Classic of Changes") is the oldest of the Chinese classic texts. It describes an ancient system of cosmology and philosophy which is at the heart of Chinese cultural beliefs. The philosophy centers on the ideas of the dynamic balance of opposites, the evolution of events as a process, and acceptance of the inevitability of change. It also makes use of the Bagua concept. The Bagua of the I Ching was one of the first examples of binary code, which later became the basis of almost all-digital programming today. Each individual trigram is made up of individual units of "kwae"--yin (divided dash) and yang (undivided dash). The eight trigrams are the natural/elemental foundations for the 64 "hexagrams" (two trigrams combined) that make the I Ching in ancient Chinese philosophy. A table of the eight possible trigrams and their related properties according to the I Ching: Trigram Figure Binary Value Name Nature Direction 1 ||| (☰) 111 Force (乾 qián) heaven (天) northwest 2 ||¦ (☱) 110 Open (兌 duì) swamp (澤) west 3 |¦| (☲) 101 Radiance (離 lí) fire (火) south 4 |¦¦ (☳) 100 Shake (震 zhèn) thunder (雷) east 5 ¦|| (☴) 011 Ground (巽 xùn) wind (風) southeast 6 ¦|¦ (☵) 010 Gorge (坎 kǎn) water (水) north 7 ¦¦| (☶) 001 Bound (艮 gèn) mountain (山) northeast 8 ¦¦¦ (☷) 000 Field (坤 kūn) earth (地) southwest Other attributes related to the trigrams. Trigram Figure Korean Name Attribute Animal Body Family 1 ||| (☰) Ch'ien, The Creative Strength, creativity Horse Head Father 2 ||¦ (☱) Sun, The Gentle Penetration, Following Fowl Thigh Eldest Daughter 3 |¦| (☲) Li, The Clinging Brightness Pheasant Eye Second Daughter 4 |¦¦ (☳) Ken, Keeping still Stillness, Stopping Dog Hand Youngest Son 5 ¦|| (☴) Tui, The Joyous Pleasure, Joy, Attraction Sheep Mouth Youngest Daughter 6 ¦|¦ (☵) K'an, The Abysmal Danger Pig Ear Second Son 7 ¦¦| (☶) Chen, The Arousing Movement, initiative, action Dragon Foot Eldest Son 8 ¦¦¦ (☷) K'un, The Receptive Docility, receptivity Ox Belly Mother - DS The King Wen sequence is the current sequence of the hexagrams in the traditional book and is also the same sequence used for the DHARMA Initiative symbol but turned inside out. There is another called the Later Heaven edition where the trigrams have a different arrangement.http://www.chinapage.com/astronomy/bagua.html Trivia * The yin-yang/religious motif is seen recurring throughout the show. The octagonal style of the Bagua is also shown in , in a lamp on Rachel's bed stand. Lost.cubit.net image * During the opening titles of Cloverfield, which was produced by J.J. Abrams, a DHARMA logo (which resembles The Pearl Logo) is visible in the bottom-right corner of screen for a moment. * Four trigrams for "wind" can be seen on the Ajira Airways * The trigram for "water" can be seen on the conning tower of the Galaga and on the backs of crew members shirts. Unanswered questions * Why did the DHARMA Initiative use baguas in their logos? See also *DHARMA Initiative *DHARMA Initiative orientation films *DHARMA Initiative stations *Fan-made DHARMA logos de:DHARMA-Logos es:Emblemas Dharma fr:Logos DHARMA he:סמלי דהארמה it:Bagua pl:Bagua pt:Iniciativa DHARMA/Logotipos ru:Логотипы ДХАРМА zh:DHARMA logos Category:DHARMA Initiative Category:Lists Category:Symbols